Bobbin-clutching means for rotatable spindles



J. A. MILLER BOBBIN CLUTCHING MEANS FOR ROTATABLE SPINDLES March 13, 1928. 1,662,781

Filed No v. 5. 192a Patented Mar. 13, 1928.

UNIT-151D sTATEjs ATENT- Oma JOSEPH A. MILLER, 0F HOPE DALE, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR. TO DRAPER COR- PORATION, OF 'HO PEDALE, MASSACHUSETTSyA CORPORATION OF MAINE.

BOBBIN -CLUTC H IN G MEANS Eon RorATABLn s rnvnnns.

Application filed'Novembcr 5, 1926. Serial no. 146,393.

'This invention relates to thattype of spindle employed in spinning frames and similar machines in which bobbinclutching members are provided to fit Within the base of the bobbin and to expandtherein thus to maintain the bobbin inpositiondu'ring the spinning or other operation.

The object of'the present invention is to provide a simple and 'eiiicient form of construction which shall involve no loose parts or 'parts'which as the result of usage, wear or accident may become loose or mISpOSh tioned.

The object of theinvention is further to provide a construction which may be readily' and "economically manufactured and assembled. I v

The'object of the invention is further to provide a constructionwhichsha'll act both by resilient expansion preliminarily to .grip and hold the bobbin and by centrifugal action finally to grip and hold the bobbin with great firmness durin rotation in the spinning or other operation.

The object of the invention isfurther to provide a construction in which, if yarn be accidentally wound on the bobbin clutching elements orthe blade, it maybe readily slipped off therefrom'without' having to be cut. The object of the invention isfurther to provide a construction which may readily be cleaned and the operation of which will not be practically interfered with by the presence of lint or fly. p The object/of the invention is further to provide a construction in which thepressure of the bobbin clutching members shall be exerted symmetrically and evenly radially of the spindle.

These and other objectsoand features of the invention will appear more fullyfrom the accompanying description and drawings and will be particularly. pointed out in the claims.

As the general construction and'operation of spinning and similar spindles with-bobbin clutching members is well known and familiar to those skilled in the art, it will only be necessary here to illustrate and describe those partsdirectly concerned with the present invention. 'It' will be recognized that spindles operate at a very high rate of speed, are subject to the collection of more or less lint and fly thereon, to the accidental winding'of'yarn thereupon, and that the operation of placing and dofling the 'bobbinsis performed by. more or less careless operators. The construction must be such that the bobbin may be readily placed on and doffed from the spindle and at the same time the construction must be such that' the bobbin will be securely "gripped and "firmly held when the spindle is rotating. These and the other conditions familiar-t0 those skilled in the art render thebobbin clutchingfeature of the spindle one of the greatest impor-' tance. I p

In the drawings: Fig. l'is'a side elevation oi-'"a porti'on'of a spindle embodying a pre'ferred form'of the present invention. V Fig; 2 is a' viewchiefiy invertical cross section on the line l--'l'of Fig.3 of the con struction shown in Fig. 1'.

Fig. 3 is a: top plan view partially in horizontal cross section "of the line of whirl'2 of the usual'type. "The whirl 2 'is.

provided with an 'uppenfiat surface '3'to form the rest. for the bobbin when placed in running position. 1 p

The bobbin clutching feature of this in; vention' in its preferred'form is avery simple construction and consists ofan integral one-piece metal sleeve 1 formed :to present a plurality of similar syinmetrically located longitudinally extending bobbin clutching arms. This sleeve is preferably made of metal having some temperand resilience such, for example, as drill rod'steel or stub steel, and the entire sleeve may readily" be formed by the usual turning, drilling and sawing operations orupon an automatic screw machine.

One essential feature of'the invention is that the bobbin clutchingsleeveshall be rigid at its lower end with the'spindle blade and the" arms thereofmovable at their-upper ends both under the action of their own resiliency and the action ofzcer'itrifugal force. TlllS is secured byforming the arms as integral portions of a sleevesucli as just referred to.

sleeve is shaped to present an exterior surface which normally conforms substantially to, but is of slightly greater diameter than, the bore of the bobbin. The lower end of the sleeve is shaped to present an exterior flange 4:. An annular recess .5 concentric with the blade is formed in the upper surface of the whirl or-bobbin rest andthe flange 4 has a driving fit at its outer perimeter in this recess, thus securing the sleeve rigidly to the whirl and thus to the blade. The interior surface of the sleeve is spaced from the inner periphery of the recess 5, as shown at 6. i

The bobbin clutching arms are preferably formed by splitting the sleeve longitudinal- 1y from its upper end nearly to the flange by cuts or kerfs 7, shown much enlarged, and there are thus formed a plurality of similar arms symmetrically arranged around the blade and extending longitudinally thereof above the bobbin rest. The upper portion of the sleeve, and consequently the upper portions 8 of the bobbin clutching arms are much thicker radially than the intermediate portion of the sleeve or the portions 9. This causes the upper portions of the arms to be much heavier than the intermediate portions or to. be substantially weighted and leaves the intermediate portions 9 of a substantially resilient nature. Consequently the bobbin clutching arms have a spring or yield radially of the. blade due to the resiliency of the portions 9, and are also intensely responsive to centrifugal action due to the heavy weighted upper portions 8.

The upper. ends of'the bobbin clutching members opposite the rigid or fixed ends are permitted inward movement toward the blade but are limited as to outward movement so that they will not move out too far radially under centrifugal action if the spindle is rotated without a bobbin in place. This result is secured by a collar 10 driven on the spindle and presenting a depending annular flange 11 slightly telescoping over thin upward projections 12 on the upper ends of the bobbin clutching arms.

The upper end of the sleeve is reduced inwardly on a smooth curve and consequently the exterior upper surfaces of the bobbin clutching arms curve inwardly at 13 on the same smooth curve. This enables the bobbin readily to be placed in position and also enables any mass of yarn accidentally wound on the bare bobbin clutching element to be slipped off over the end of the spindle without having to be cut.

The bobbin clutching members are all of precisely the same shape and construction and this is necessary in order that they may act symmetrically in gripping and holding the bobbin. This result isinsured in the preferred form of the present invention illustrated because these bobbin clutching members are formed from a sleeve which is first given the required shape or configuration.

The operation of the spindle will now be apparent. The bobbin clutching members normally stand as shown in Fig. 1, due to their original shape, with the exterior surface of the entire group conforming substantially to, but of slightly greater diameter than, the bore of the bobbin. When the bobbin is placed on the blade and seated on the bobbin rest, the arms first act by yielding inwardly, due to the resilience of the p0rtions 9, to engage the bobbin bore which slides down easily over the surfaces 13 and this resilience is suflicient to hold the bobbin in place as thespindle starts rotating. As soon asthe spindle is rotating, the centrifugal force exerted u on the heavy, weighted free ends of the obbin clutching members causes them to grip and hold the bobbin very firmly.

It will be seen that there are no loose'parts which can drop out or the operation of which can be interfered with in anyway.

The rigid positioning of the sleeveor the bobbin clutching arms at one end insures the relative position of the parts remaining constant. The only place at which lint or fly can enter is through the slots 7 and as theseare very small, and as thespacewithin the sleeve or between the blade and the bobbin clutching membersis relatively large, there is practically no chance of lint or fiy collecting suflicientlyto interfere with the operation. Any such collection mayv readily be removed by blowing it out.

The entire construction may. be readily 1andd economically manufactured and assem- Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, and desired to be secured by Letters Patent, is: r i

1. A rotatable spindle comprising a blade, a bobbin rest secured thereto, an integral one-piece bobbin clutching sleeve concentric with the blade having a cylindrical lower end rigidly secured in the bobbin rest andspaced from the blade,-the said sleeve presenting a plurality of similar upwardly extending arms symmetrically arranged around theblade, said arms being much heavier at their upper free ends than at their ing a concentric annular recess in its seat having a cylindrical lower end rigidly mounted concentrically of the blade and having its exterior surface shaped to conform substantially to, but of slightly greater diameter than, the bore of the bobbin, the upper end portion of the sleeve being much thicker than an extended portion intermediate the ends, the said sleeve being split longitudinally through the thicker upper end and intermediate portions to form a plurality of smooth bobbin clutching arms similarly resilient at their intermediate portions and similarly weighted and thereby in tensely responsive to centrifugal action at 1 their free ends.

3. A rotatable spindle comprising a blade, a bobbin rest secured to the blade and hav- 7 an integral one-piece sleeve concentric with and spaced from the spindle and shaped exteriorly to conform to the bore of the bobbin and having at its lower end an exterior bobbin is placed on the blade and seated on a the rest, the said arms first act yieldingly to engage the bore of the bobbin and then, upon rotation of the spindle, act by centrifugal force firmly to clutch the bobbin.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

JOSEPH A. MILLER. 

